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Do you feel that you don’t have as much energy as you would like? If so, you have company. Fatigue is one of the most common complaints that people bring to their physicians. It seems that almost everyone today feels low-energy, stressed, and worn out much of the time.

Unfortunately, there are no easy solutions to this common problem. While many medical conditions can cause fatigue,
1
the overwhelming majority of people who experience fatigue do not have any illness that can be diagnosed. It seems most likely that the true cause of this widespread problem is modern life itself.

The body was not designed for a sedentary life. While today most of us might consider one hour of exercise daily to be ideal, in the past, eight hours of daily exercise was not uncommon. Our ancestors lived much of their lives outdoors and walked many miles every day. Today, we live indoors, sit in chairs, and seldom walk more than a mile. Not only that, instead of peaceful outdoor surroundings, we live in a fast-paced, noisy world that interrupts us constantly with its demands and requires that we multitask our way through nerve-frazzling challenges. This way of life simply violates the body’s design principles.

Furthermore, with the invention of the electric light, the body’s normal sleep habits were replaced by progressively longer periods of wakefulness. Few people today get eight hours of sleep regularly, much less the 10 to 12 hours that some experts believe our ancestors ordinarily enjoyed (at least in winter).

Tiredness, in other words, is a consequence of numerous factors that confront us all, and for that reason it isn’t easy to fix.

If you do not prove to have any identifiable illness, the next steps to take involve common sense principles. People with inadequate energy should increase the time they give themselves to sleep, exercise daily (as much as possible), and reduce bad habits, such as
cigarette smoking
and excessive consumption of
alcohol
. Cutting down on coffee consumption may help too by improving sleep and decreasing stress. In addition, it is important not to neglect such fundamentals as enjoyable work, healthy relationships, and adequate recreation. Even very unhealthy people tend to have more energy when they love what they’re doing with their lives.

Nutrient deficiencies can also cause fatigue, and for this reason it may be useful to take supplements. For more information on this topic, see the article on
General Nutritional Support
.

One nutrient requires a bit of special attention:
iron
. Iron deficiency can cause anemia, which in turn can cause fatigue. Certain manufacturers of iron supplements made a leap from this fact to the conclusion (unsupported at the time) that iron supplements were useful treatments for general fatigue. This recommendation worried many experts, because there is at least some evidence that taking too much iron can be harmful.
9-11

On this basis, many physicians recommended that their patients avoid iron supplements if they were not anemic. More recent evidence, however, suggests that the iron promoters may have been at least partially right. Several studies indicate that marginal deficiency of iron, too slight to cause anemia, may decrease physical performance capacity.
2-7

In addition, a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 144 women with unexplained fatigue who also had low or borderline-low levels of ferritin (a measure of stored iron) found that use of an iron supplement enhanced energy and well-being.
8
Nonetheless, it is not advisable to take iron just because you feel tired. Make sure to get tested to see whether you are indeed deficient. With iron, more is definitely
not
better.

Other Alternative Approaches

Many alternative practitioners recommend reducing intake of sugar and other simple carbohydrates or going on a
low-carbohydrate diet
, but there is no scientific evidence as yet to show that this will increase your energy. Similarly, it is unclear whether eating organic or pesticide-free foods or becoming a vegetarian (or its opposite, going on a so-called caveman diet) will make a difference. Still, there is nothing wrong with trying these methods, and some people feel that they help.

Despite widespread claims, there are no herbs or supplements proven to enhance overall energy and
well-being
. Some of the natural products claimed to have this effect include:

The supplements
tyrosine
and
NADH
have shown promise for enhancing wakefulness under conditions of sleep deprivation, but they have not been investigated for treating ongoing fatigue.

Most systems of alternative medicine claim to be able to improve overall health and enhance energy, including
Chinese medicine
,
chiropractic
,
Ayurveda
,
homeopathy
, and
naturopathy
. Therapies such as
massage
,
Reiki
, and
Therapeutic Touch
, and exercise systems such as
yoga
and
Tai Chi
make the same claim. Furthermore, based on the theory that toxins in the environment are a major cause of illness, some alternative practitioners recommend
detoxification
methods. However, there is as yet no meaningful supporting evidence to indicate that these approaches actually improve overall energy.

People who are tired because they don’t sleep well might find benefit by trying natural therapies for
insomnia
. Similarly, people who feel overwhelmed by life may benefit from natural treatments for
stress
.

In addition, many people with low energy report that they feel better when they use natural treatments for
food allergies
,
candida
, or
low immunity
; whether this is merely due to a placebo effect, however, remains unclear.

The Bottom Line

In most cases, fatigue is a complex problem that doesn’t respond to simple treatment approaches. However, don’t be discouraged. Simply making it a priority to feel better may eventually lead to improvement.

Revision Information

This content is reviewed regularly and is updated when new and relevant evidence is made available. This information is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with questions regarding a medical condition.